What Happened When We Tried Six Aloe Vera Beauty Hacks

If you were to look at my beauty arsenal right now, you would find several of my essential beauty products neatly lined up next to each other, waiting for my next morning or evening routine. Along with my cleanser, moisturizer, sunscreen, and lip balm, there are two multi-purpose beauty ingredients that I honestly can't live without: coconut oil and aloe vera gel. Both are known for their soothing, hydrating properties and are beauty ingredients that can be used in a myriad of ways to help you achieve your beauty goals. Since I already tried coconut oil with these eight coconut oil beauty hacks, I thought why not do the same with my favorite aloe vera gel? Find out what happened when I tried four aloe vera beauty hacks.

LIKE #1: USE ALOE VERA GEL AS YOUR EYEBROW GEL

As a skincare-obsessed beauty editor, I always—I repeat: ALWAYS—make up without makeup. So, you can imagine my excitement when I found out that aloe vera gel can be used as a natural looking brow gel. You can tame your brows with aloe vera gel in several ways: either by putting a scoop of the gel on a disposable mascara stick and applying it to your brows, or you can buy an empty mascara tube online and fill it with aloe vera. gel and use a stick to apply the gel on the eyebrows. For this experiment, I tried the latter. 

After thoughts: After carefully squeezing some aloe vera gel into my empty mascara tube and applying a few strokes of the wand to my brows, I was immediately hooked! My brows are naturally quite dark so I don't need the extra color that comes with most brow gels... so this aloe vera hack did the trick! After application, my eyebrows looked smooth and manageable without the addition of dark pigment.

LIKE #2: ALOE VERA GEL AS A BODY LOTION

When I found out that you can use aloe vera gel in place of body lotion, I was as much intrigued as I was skeptical. Whenever I have used aloe vera gel on my body, I have found that it can leave a sticky residue. However, I wanted to give this beauty hack one last try before dropping it all together. In the past, I've used regular, store-bought aloe vera gel... so this time I bought a real aloe vera leaf, cut it open, squeezed the plant's gel directly onto my feet, and rubbed it in as best I could. how could I.

After thoughts: Even though the aloe vera leaf gel rubbed into my skin more easily, my feet still felt sticky after application. I even tried to give him a few minutes to see if anything would change, but it didn't. That being said, if you want to use aloe vera gel as a body lotion, I would recommend finding a lotion or body oil with a soothing ingredient, like this one from The Body Shop.

LIKE #3: ALOE VERA AS SHAVING CREAM

I don't know about you, but when I run out of shaving cream, I often forget to add it to my shopping list. This results in me using bar soap, shower gel, or whatever else I can find to lubricate my legs before shaving. So, when I read that you can use aloe vera instead of shaving cream when you're in a pinch, I definitely wanted to give it a try!

After thoughts: I'm happy to report that this aloe vera beauty hack worked (and was much more convenient than using soap or...sigh...just water). What else? It left my legs soft, hydrated and soothed after shaving.

LIKE #4: ALOE VERA AS A SOOTHING REMEDY FOR SUNBURN

When it comes to soothing nasty sunburn, aloe vera can be a beach bag staple! Loaded with vitamins A, C, E, enzymes, amino acids, and minerals, Aloe Vera can help soothe sunburn and hydrate the skin. To use, simply apply aloe vera plant gel - or use store-bought aloe vera gel - to sunburned area as needed.

After thoughts: Aloe vera has always been one of my favorite remedies for nasty sunburn. I love that it can provide dry, uncomfortable skin with a cooling effect and leaves the affected area feeling hydrated and nourished.